Modi on two-day visit to Karnataka from January 2

Bengaluru: Prime Minister Narendra Modi will be visiting Karnataka for two days, to inaugurate Indian Science Congress 103rd session at Mysore on January 3, said an official on Monday.

“Modi will unveil a new hospital of Avadhoota Datta Peeam of Ganapati Sacchidananda Swamiji on arriving at Mysuru on January 2,” the statement said.

Modi will also participate in the centenary celebrations of Jagadguru Shivaratri Rajendra Mahaswamiji of Suttur Math on January 2 evening.

After attending the Science Congress in the University of Mysore campus, Modi will go to Nittur in Tumakuru district, 70 km from here, to lay the foundation stone for a new helicopter manufacturing plant of the state-run Hindustan Aeronautics Ltd (HAL).

Later, he will inaugurate the 21st international conference on ‘Frontiers in Yoga Research and its Applications’ at Jagani on this city’s outskirts.

“The five-day conference, organised by the Swami Vivekananda Yoga Anusandhana Samsthana (S-Vyasa Institute), will focus on integrated medicine to treat modern day ailments,” the statement added.

PM Modi last week visited another southern state Kerala.(IANS)(image: youtube.com)

Microsoft to pay $250,000 to help them catch chip bugs. Wikimedia Commons

Microsoft completed its first renewable energy deal in India

The deal took place in Bengaluru

The deal took place to encourage investments in local solar energy operations

Microsoft on Tuesday said it completed its first renewable energy deal in India which will help power its new office building here with solar power.

As part of the deal, the tech giant will purchase three megawatts of solar-powered electricity from Bengaluru-based renewable power producer Atria Power.

The deal took place in India’s IT hub, Bengaluru.

This will meet 80 percent of the projected electricity needs at the new facility, Microsoft said.

“Investing in local solar energy to help power our new Bengaluru office building is good for Microsoft, good for India and good for the environment,” said Anant Maheshwari, President.

This deal is part of the Karnataka government’s programme to encourage investments in local solar energy operations, and in line with the larger Indian government goal to ramp up solar power generation to 100 gigawatts by 2022.

“We are proud to be deepening our long history of partnership and investment in India with this agreement. This deal will help us grow sustainably and supports the growth of the Indian solar energy industry, so that the entire country can more easily and reliably access clean electricity,” Maheshwari added.

This is Microsoft’s first solar energy agreement in India, and one of the first in Asia — the company completed a new solar agreement in Singapore last week.

This deal is a part of encouraging the use of renewable energy. Pixabay

Once completed, this project will bring MS’s total global direct procurement in renewable energy projects to nearly 900 megawatts.

“Microsoft, like India, has ambitious commitments to use more renewable energy,” said Rob Bernard, Chief Environmental Strategist, Microsoft. IANS